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Survey Reveals Top 3 Challenges for Physicians

AMA survey of physicians, residents, and medical students finds most are satisfied despite challenges

HealthDay News — Nine out of 10 American doctors are happy with their choice of profession, even though they have some challenges, according to an American Medical Association (AMA) survey of 1,200 doctors, residents, and medical students, conducted in February.

Three-quarters of survey respondents said that helping people was the main reason for their career choice. Seventy-three percent of physicians said they knew before they were 20 years old that they wanted to be a doctor, while one-third knew before they reached their teens, the survey revealed. Sixty-one percent of doctors said they would encourage others to enter the field of medicine. The top reasons given for deciding to become a physician were personal experiences as a patient, volunteer, or with family members.

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According to the results of the survey, administrative burden, stress, and lack of time are the top three concerns that challenge doctors. Residents were more likely to include long hours and an on-call schedule among their top challenges.

"Physicians may be discouraged at times, but almost every single one of us remains confident in our decision to enter medicine and continues to be driven by our desire to help our patients," Andrew Gurman, MD, AMA president, said in a news release from the association. "As an organization, the AMA is constantly striving to deliver resources that empower physicians to maximize time with their patients and help them succeed at every stage of their medical lives. Understanding the challenges physicians face, as well as their motivations for continuing on, is critical to fulfilling that mission."